Ecology, Environment and Conservation Paper

ABUNDANCE AND DIVERSITY OF MEIOFAUNA AS WATER QUALITY BIOINDICATOR IN LOSARI COAST, MAKASSAR, INDONESIA

Muh. Sri Yusal, Muh Aris Marfai, Suwarno Hadisusanto and Nurul Khakhim

Abstract

The various types of waste on Losari Coast are result of the high development activities in Makassar city that threaten coastal ecosystems. Meiofauna is benthic organism can be used as bioindicator of polluted water quality. This study assessed the abundance and diversity of meiofauna as bioindicator in Losari Coast, Makassar, Indonesia. Quantitative descriptive analysis and purposive sampling is method and sampling technique in this study. The total meiofauna abundance was 50,385 indv m-2, comprising 12 phyla and 118 species. Ostracoda, Oligochaeta, Sarcomatigophora, Polychaeta, Ciliophora, Turbellaria, and Nematoda were found in greatest abundance particularly due to their high adaptability to contaminated aquatic environments. The stations nearby hotels and restaurants appeared to have the highest abundance because these places disposed of organic wastes, i.e., the food source of meiofauna, to the environment. As locations around Soekarno-Hatta Port, Paotere Harbor, andthe mouth of Jeneberang River, meiofauna was present low abundance on account of direct physical disturbance from the busy anthropogenic activities. Diversity index of meiofauna at all stations ranged from 2.6183 to 3.3641. The dominance index was close to 0, and the evenness index was close to 1. These figures indicate meiofauna with high diversity, even distribution, and no dominant species.